Ginger candy
Ginger candy
Dear friends:
Hello, everyone! Welcome to Fenghuang in western Hunan for sightseeing. Fenghuang not only has beautiful scenery, but also abounds in local specialties. Many foods here are quite distinctive, and among them ginger candy is a very representative one.
Ginger candy is a kind of delicacy. Its distinctive flavor—sweet yet not cloying, crisp yet not hard, fragrant yet not spicy, with a sweet, crisp, aromatic taste and a slight hint of ginger's pungency—is truly unforgettable. Only those who lived through the three years of natural disasters in the 1960s truly understand the meaning of "hunger." Yet back then, ginger candy was cheap enough: one cent could buy two pieces, available at any grocery store. Even so, wanting to spend money on ginger candy was still a luxury. When there was not even food to eat, how could there be money for ginger candy! People were strange, though—even with such a lack of food and clothing, they somehow rarely fell ill. At that time, how I wished I could get sick, catch a cold or something, because then I could get one cent to buy two pieces of ginger candy. After all, it saved a trip to the hospital, and it was quite effective. Otherwise, if I got seasick or carsick, my face pale and pitiful, then I would surely get a piece of ginger candy from my mother. Once the candy entered my mouth, I would puff out my cheeks and suck gently. That fragrant crispness with a touch of ginger, that mellow sweetness that was not cloying, would refresh my spirit from within. Instantly, my face would glow again, and I would be lively as the "Monkey King" once more. Ginger candy was not only a rare delicacy, but simply a miracle cure of childhood.
Ginger candy is a specialty of western Hunan, and it is also the most famous specialty snack of Fenghuang, a small town in western Hunan. Fenghuang was praised by the famous New Zealand poet Rewi Alley, who lived and traveled in China for most of his life, as "the hometown in dreams" and "the homeland of the past." He also affectionately called it "the most beautiful small town in China." Fenghuang is also the hometown of Xiong Xiling, premier of the Republic of China, Shen Congwen, father of regional literature, and the famous painter Huang Yongyu. This beautiful mountain town, because of its primitiveness, its ancient simplicity, its purity, and the influence of Border Town, has now become the best place for people to seek "the homeland of the past."
Ginger is pungent, and sugar is sweet. For many people who have never tasted ginger candy, it seems hard to imagine combining ginger and sugar into a food, yet the people of Fenghuang have done exactly that, and have made it into a famous product loved by young and old alike. Ginger candy is a very tasty specialty: fragrant to the nose and crisp to the bite. It is not as cloyingly sweet as candy, nor as pungently overpowering as ginger. Its slight sweetness and just-right spiciness leave a lingering fragrance on the lips and teeth and a long aftertaste. Walking along the ancient stone-paved streets of the old town, one finds a dazzling array of local products and ethnic handicrafts. Wave after wave of sweet aroma fills the nose; the air is thick with an inseparable sweetness, with a faint spiciness, and the entire old street of Fenghuang is steeped in a spicy, sweet fragrance. That kind of temptation is not easily resisted.
Ginger candy is a specialty of Fenghuang. Most ginger candy shops have a storefront in front and a workshop behind. In the workshop, ginger is added to the sugar syrup and slowly boiled, its overflowing fragrance attracting passersby to stop. Outside the shop, the ginger candy master stands with feet apart, pulling one end of the candy with both hands and swinging it up and down. His movements are skillful as he stretches a lump of already-cooked sticky ginger candy into a loop and hangs it on a hook by the door, then pulls the other end, stretching out a piece of candy more than a meter long like hand-pulled noodles, twists it into a figure-eight, hangs it on the hook again, pulls again, hangs it again, and repeats this pulling over and over... until the "candy mass" develops bright longitudinal streaks along the direction of stretching, like dough. In the sunlight, white shadows sway, and the white candy mass swings out arcs again and again. As it is pulled more and more, longer and longer, the ginger candy becomes harder and harder, and its "body" becomes denser. Finally, with a slap, the master hangs the other end on the hook, and the pulling is done. After cooling, it becomes the finished product—hard and crisp ginger candy...
Among Fenghuang ginger candies, "Master Jia's Ginger Candy" is the most famous. Made with a unique ancestral recipe and craftsmanship, it is a traditional exclusive specialty of Fenghuang. Its pieces are uniform in size and dark brown in color, soft and moist, fine and smooth with no residue, sweet with a slight ginger taste, and refreshingly fragrant.
Master Jia's Ginger Candy originated during the Qianlong reign of the Qing Dynasty. It was first created by the ancestors of the Jia family and has a history of more than two hundred years. In fact, the formation of ginger candy as a specialty came about entirely by accident. Fenghuang is located in western Hunan Province, where the climate is damp. People eat all kinds of grains and work hard all year round, and when they occasionally catch a cold, it is hard to avoid falling ill. For such minor ailments, the people of Fenghuang generally do not seek medical help; they have their own ways of curing themselves. There is a folk remedy in Fenghuang for wind-cold colds: cut a few slices of ginger, mix with brown sugar, boil them in an earthen bowl, and when it reaches the right strength, drink it hot, then cover up with a quilt and sweat heavily. After that, one feels light and refreshed, restored as before.
This medicine for wind-cold colds is called ginger-sugar tea, and its main ingredients are ginger and sugar. Ginger is a traditional Chinese herbal medicine. Therefore, ancient dietary health sayings include: "Women should not go three days without lotus root; men should not go three days without ginger. Eat a slice of ginger in the morning, and it is better than ginseng soup. If you often eat radish and ginger, you need no doctor's prescription..." Once, Master Jia's ancestor was boiling ginger-sugar tea and let it cook too long, turning it into a paste. The poor family could not bear to throw it away, so they ate the sugary paste. Unexpectedly, it not only tasted good, but also had the same remarkable healing effect.
Since this sugary paste had such effects, why not make ginger and sugar into a solid candy that could be stored and taken at any time? Thus, ginger candy, this popular specialty that has benefited the people, was invented through such an accidental mistake. At that time, the Jia family was very poor. To make a living, they fried glutinous rice until cooked, ground it fine, mixed it evenly with ginger juice, brown sugar, and other ingredients, kneaded it into a soft cake, cut it into small strips, and sold them at a roadside stall. Because this food had a unique flavor and was cheap and delicious, it soon won the favor of passersby. Business gradually prospered, and the descendants of the Jia family took it up as their trade, opened the first ginger candy workshop, and began selling from a shop.
In the years that followed, Master Jia's ancestors made ginger candy with ever greater refinement, and through continuous research added a series of Chinese herbs beneficial to health, such as goji berries. The people of Fenghuang call goji berries "niang'erhong," and they are believed to replenish vital essence, nourish the kidneys and lungs, promote body fluids, and support yang. In this way, ginger candy became a fine sugar product whose secret recipe was closely guarded by various families in Fenghuang, and thus naturally became a commonly used health candy that made Fenghuang unique. As a result, it entered the market and became the main livelihood of some people. In the ancient town of Fenghuang there were many workshops making ginger candy, and children and women would carry baskets through the streets and alleys of the old town to sell it. On the long streets, one could often see adults and children puffing out their cheeks, sucking ginger candy with great relish.
Over the long years, ginger candy became the best companion for mountain people in resisting cold and treating illness and strengthening the body. But ginger candy truly became famous and widely circulated as tribute during the Xianfeng reign of the Qing Dynasty.
It is said that during the Daoguang reign of the Qing Dynasty, the young and promising Crown Prince Yizhu, later the Xianfeng Emperor, heard from ministers that Fenghuang Camp had since ancient times been a land of barbarians and also the place with the most beauties. In the year Li Zicheng entered Beijing, Chen Yuanyuan, a beauty of nation-toppling charm, was seized by his subordinate Liu Zongmin. Chen Yuanyuan had originally been a famous courtesan from the Suzhou area, graceful and elegant, and skilled in singing and dancing. Wu Sangui had taken her as a concubine and doted on her greatly. When he heard that Chen Yuanyuan had been seized, Wu Sangui, then a Ming general guarding Shanhaiguan, was driven mad with rage. In fury over a beauty, he led troops to attack the peasant army and let Dorgon enter the pass. From then on, Chinese society began a new chapter. He turned his coat and mutinied; wherever his great army went, it swept all before it, from Shanhaiguan all the way to Yunnan, pursuing and killing the Southern Ming prince into Burma. It was on this southward march that he pacified the remaining Ming forces in Hunan and Guizhou... It was during this southern campaign that he came to western Hunan. Passing by La'er Mountain in Fenghuang, he saw a beautiful girl carrying water coming toward him, and ordered his men to summon her to his tent for a talk. The two hit it off very well, and a few days later they were married. Because the girl hated the cruelty of war and worried that accompanying him would burden her husband, she decided to stay home and care for his parents, planning to join him in Beijing when Wu Sangui returned in triumph. Seeing his wife's determination, Wu Sangui had no choice but to lead the army on. Later, because of his merits in attacking the peasant army and destroying the Ming army, Wu Sangui was enfeoffed by the Shunzhi Emperor as Prince of Pingxi and established a separatist regime in Yunnan... And so he and his wife were separated for more than twenty years. But the Prince of Pingxi, unwilling to remain in one corner, finally could not endure the loneliness, and in the twelfth year of the Kangxi reign of the Qing Dynasty (1673), the "Revolt of the Three Feudatories" broke out, led by Wu Sangui, Prince of Pingxi. At that time, Wu Sangui was already 67 years old. He thought: my power is declining day by day, and I am old. Marching back to Beijing is already impossible. Why not make myself emperor? Even if I cannot pass it down for generations, I can still be a hero for a time. Therefore, from the very beginning of his uprising, he already harbored the idea of making himself emperor. The following year, Wu's army entered Hunan and captured Changde, Changsha, Yuezhou, Lizhou, Hengyang, and other places. For a time, six provinces in Yunnan and Hunan were occupied. Kangxi urgently sent a large army to the provinces to put down the rebellion. By the fifteenth year of Kangxi (1676), after stabilizing the northwest, the Qing army threw its full strength into attacking Hunan, pressing toward Changsha from two routes, Jingzhou in Hubei and Pingxiang in Jiangxi. Wu's army defended with all its strength, and the two sides fought a great battle. In the sixteenth year of Kangxi (1677), Fujian, Guangdong, and Jiangxi were successively pacified. In the seventeenth year of Kangxi (1678), Wu Sangui built an altar in Hengyang, sacrificed to Heaven and Earth, proclaimed himself "emperor," changed the dynastic title to Zhou, changed the era name to "Zhaowu," and renamed Hengzhou as Dingtian Prefecture. When Wu Sangui sacrificed to Heaven, although it had clearly been a bright sunny day, suddenly violent winds and rain came, and dark clouds blotted out the sun. As a result, Wu Sangui caught a chill and often suffered from chills and fever. A few months later, he fell gravely ill and could not rise from his bed. So he fled back to La'er Mountain in Fenghuang and lived with his beloved wife for a period of time...
When Crown Prince Yizhu heard this, his interest was greatly aroused. He ordered his attendants to change clothes, left the palace in disguise, and dressed as a scholar going to the capital for the imperial examination, set off for Fenghuang. Along the way, Yizhu learned about the hardships of the local people's lives and the conditions of official governance. Before many days had passed, he arrived in Fenghuang and saw that its prosperity was no less than that of the capital. As Yizhu walked through Fenghuang, before he knew it he had turned into an alley of the small town. "Ginger candy, ginger candy, Master Jia's ginger candy, five wen per liang, taste before you buy, no charge if it doesn't taste good..." In the distance he saw a pretty girl in Miao dress standing in front of the "Master Jia's Ginger Candy Workshop" calling out to sell. He could not help saying, "Miss! How does your ginger candy taste? Could you give me a little to try?" "Brother, you must be from out of town, right? Judging by your scholar's appearance, you are going to the capital for the examination! You must have traveled a long way and must be hungry. Here, take it and eat. After eating this, you will be refreshed and strengthened." Seeing the girl's kindness, Yizhu was moved. He took it and ate several pieces of Master Jia's ginger candy. "Oh, fragrant, sweet, spicy, and crisp all at once. Good stuff. Thank you. When I pass the examination, I will surely make your shop more and more prosperous." Yizhu was captivated by Master Jia's ginger candy, and even more smitten by the beautiful Miao girl. Holding the ginger candy the girl had given him, Yizhu tasted it all the way back to his lodging, his heart sweet all along the road. "Such a good girl, I must take her as my wife." And so, without realizing it, Yizhu stayed here for three months. His feelings for the Miao girl Feng Lan grew deeper and deeper, and the two were inseparable all day long. As the autumn examination drew near, and with his father the emperor's summons, Yizhu decided to return to the capital as ordered. Before leaving, Feng Lan said, "Yizhu, go and take the examination. I will wait for you." Yizhu kissed the girl's forehead and said, "Wait for me. I will definitely pass and come back to marry you, and I will also write the recipe and making process of Master Jia's ginger candy into a secret manual to pass down to later generations."
Two years later, in the third month, the crown prince ascended the throne, changed the era name to Xianfeng, and issued an edict summoning Feng Lan to the capital as an imperial concubine without revealing his identity. On the fifteenth day of the third month, the ancient town of Fenghuang resounded with drums and gongs and deafening firecrackers, full of joyous festivity. This was the customary ceremony for when Fenghuang produced a provincial graduate or a top scholar. Feng Lan, full of anticipation, looked around for Xianfeng to appear. Suddenly, a procession of sedan chairs appeared in the street, with officials dressed in court robes, stopping in front of the "Master Jia's Ginger Candy Workshop." The leading official held an edict: "The imperial edict arrives! Jia Feng Lan of the Jia family, receive the edict. By the mandate of Heaven, the emperor decrees: the commoner woman Jia Feng Lan shall enter the capital on the third day of the fourth month to marry Xianfeng. Respect this!" On the third day of the fourth month, the whole ancient town was decorated with lanterns and colored banners. Master Jia's Ginger Candy Workshop was even more ingenious: all the flower-and-bird patterns on the welcome gifts, and all the words on the horizontal banners and couplets accompanying the dowry, were made of ginger candy. From then on, the third day of the fourth month became the day for emperors of successive dynasties to choose concubines, and also the day awaited by all Miao girls in Fenghuang. Master Jia's ginger candy thus became tribute and became famous throughout the world.
There is a folk song circulating in the Fenghuang area as evidence:
Since ancient times, beauties have come from Fenghuang; the Jia family's ginger candy is famous through the ages;
Sweet and spicy, it stirs a maiden's feelings; every shred and slice intoxicates a young man's heart.
In a humble workshop of just two or three rooms, its crisp and fragrant name plays out the world of mortals.
A fine tale slowly seeped into the emperor's heart; in disguise he left the palace to tour Fenghuang.
Feng Lan was born into an ordinary family; how could she know she would marry the emperor himself?
Two hearts nestled together, heaven and humanity as one; the secret history of ginger candy is hidden in the ancient town.
The day for choosing the concubine was set as the third of the fourth month; the emperor walked in person to welcome his beloved.
Once it became tribute, it was renowned throughout the realm; the ancient town of Fenghuang shone with glory.
Fenghuang ginger candy has been handed down since the Qianlong reign of the Qing Dynasty, with a history of more than 200 years, and has always circulated in the western Hunan region. Today, this rare thing, long hidden in the boudoir and forgotten by people, has been brought out into the market like an antique, and yet it has actually stood its ground before forests of foreign-packaged candies and won people's affection. This is mainly because Fenghuang ginger candy is sweet with a slight ginger taste, soft and moist, richly fragrant, refreshing and appetizing, promoting saliva and invigorating blood, with a mellow mouthfeel and a combination of fragrance, crispness, sweetness, and spiciness, with an endless aftertaste. It is made by traditional craftsmanship from high-quality brown sugar, camellia oil, fresh ginger, top-grade glutinous rice, top-grade sesame, peach kernels, and honeyed rose. It has the functions of relieving gas and strengthening the stomach and preventing dizziness and stopping vomiting, and is a good companion for travel and home. It is an ideal edible product with health benefits.
Fenghuang ginger candy is now flourishing in the market. The air is filled with the fragrance of sugar, and in the ears rings the "click," "click" sound of scissors cutting candy. Walking on such a street, one hazily recalls the scene depicted in "Visiting an Old Friend's Farm": "Open the windows facing the fields and garden; raise a cup and talk of mulberries and hemp. When the Double Ninth Festival comes, I will come again for the chrysanthemums." Placing oneself in Fenghuang, one is intoxicated by its lingering ancient charm, intoxicated in the net woven by Mr. Shen's faint nostalgia and silken melancholy; intoxicated by the charm of the ancient town's green mountains and the quiet flow of the emerald Tuo River. And the exquisitely beautiful houses, each displaying its own character, and the continuous rows along the river of stilted houses supported by wooden pillars, with lengthwise and crosswise fir boards as walls, embodying the rich ethnic character of western Hunan, stand by the river like oil paintings, wall linked to wall, eave to eave, hand in hand, shoulder to shoulder, all the way onward...